LaurelLit.com
Writer, Reader, English Teacher
In my quest to write quality YA fiction, I’ve been reading quality YA fiction, hoping something will sink in through osmosis. They do say that the best way to learn to write is by reading, and with that in mind, Jessica Goodman’s They Wish They Were Us was an excellent choice. It’s a great story with a surprisingly feminist message.
The main character is Jill Newman, who attends a prestigious Long Island private …
Summer Darlings, by Brooke Lea Foster, opens with our protagonist, Heddy, musing about Jackie Kennedy. As Heddy looks out at the waters of Martha's Vineyard, she thinks to herself that the first lady is probably looking out at the same sea. Heddy feels exceedingly lucky to have gotten a summer job as a nanny, working for a wealthy family who seem the epitome of glamour and privilege. Yet, this a novel, so of course nothing is as it appears in the new world …
I'm big into box subscriptions, but as I do not profess to be a lifestyle blogger and instead blog about anything that has to do with reading or writing, I thought I'd take a different angle with my box subscription. I'm not going to give you a review of the products that came in Allure's May beauty box; instead I'm giving you a rundown of how these products are written about by Allure's writers, contributors, and editors. In addition to the products in each month's box, there is a tiny …
I love "ripped from the headlines" sorts of novels, and Admissions most certainly qualifies as one. However, as it's written from a kid's POV, this novel also qualifies as YA, which I haven't been reading too much of lately. That's changed though, since I have decided to venture outside my comfort zone and write my own YA novel. So, I thought it would be smart to read whatever YA novels look intriguing and well done. Admissions by Julie Buxbaum was …
In the last year I have read several novels that feature Instagram influencers, like Big Summer, by Jennifer Weiner. Ellery Lloyd's People Like Her takes influencer culture to a whole new level and I found the book both fascinating and shocking. I'm late to the party when it comes to Instagram & none of my knowledge of it is first hand. But on its predecessor, Facebook, I've seen how people can over-idealize their lives and make themselves seem …
